Association studies are rapidly linking miRNAs with cancer and neurological disorders. miRNAs have specific expression and function in specialized cell types, emphasizing the need to define cell-type-specific miRNA expression patterns. The most common method for visualizing gene expression in specific cell types is in situ hybridization (ISH).
However, conventional ISH methods permit the release and diffusion of small nucleic acids, such as miRNA, from tissue. Therefore, there remains a need for an improved method to fix and detect small nucleic acids in a tissue sample.